Shafaqna Pakistan: Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has claimed that it attacked two US vessels and eight oil tankers in the Gulf in retaliation for the reported US destruction of five Iranian oil tankers, Iranian state media reported.
The IRGC said its forces targeted 10 vessels attempting to pass through what it described as a “prohibited and unsafe” area of the Strait of Hormuz. The claims could not immediately be independently verified.
The reported strikes followed US Central Command’s announcement that American forces had destroyed five Iranian crude oil tankers in response to Iranian missile attacks on US Navy vessels.
Shipping activity through the Strait of Hormuz has already declined sharply amid the escalating tensions. Preliminary Kpler data showed that only six commodity vessels crossed the waterway on Tuesday, compared with nine a day earlier and a 10-day average of around 12.
Hormuz shipping traffic falls below 10-day average as regional war intensifies
Six commodity vessels transited the Strait of Hormuz on Tuesday, down from nine the day earlier and below the 10-day average of about 12, preliminary shipping data showed on Wednesday.
Five of the vessels were entering the strait, and one was exiting, according to ship-tracker Kpler data available at 0200 GMT. The vessels included one Panamax and one intermediate tanker.
The figures could change as some ships typically switch off their transponders while in transit.
The subdued traffic comes as the US-Israeli war on Iran intensified, with Tehran-backed Houthis in Yemen launching strikes on several Saudi cities, while US forces hit multiple Iranian oil tankers and Iran struck a US base in Jordan.
Meanwhile, 25 commodity vessels transited the Bab el-Mandeb strait on Tuesday, with 11 entering and 14 exiting. That was also below the 10-day average of around 27 vessels.
The figures highlight the continued disruption to traffic through two of the Middle East’s key maritime chokepoints amid the escalating regional conflict.
Revolutionary Guard says it attacked two US destroyers in latest US-Iran confrontation
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said it attacked two US Navy destroyers with ballistic missiles, Iranian state media reported early Wednesday, in the latest claim of direct military confrontation between Tehran and Washington.
The Guards said the two American warships were targeted as tensions remain high around the Strait of Hormuz, where the United States has been carrying out naval operations and enforcing pressure on Iranian oil shipments.
The Iranian claim could not immediately be independently verified. The US military has previously said American warships successfully evaded Iranian missile attacks and has denied Iranian claims that US naval vessels were struck.
The latest statement comes amid a sharp deterioration in US-Iran relations, with both sides exchanging attacks and threats involving military vessels and Iran’s oil fleet.
source: Geo News
